For the second year, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) was able to award Grow Your Own (GYO) grants to 125 local education agencies (LEAs). Review the list of LEA grant recipients here. DESE’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget includes $2.5 million to support one-time grants of $10,000 to LEAs to create or strengthen their local Grow Your Own program, designed to increase recruitment of quality teachers in LEAs across the state.

Jennifer Jones, an English teacher at Lee’s Summit West High School in the Lee’s Summit R-VII School District, was selected by a committee of her peers and education partners across the state as the 2025 Missouri Teacher of the Year. She becomes the 56th Missouri Teacher of the Year since the program’s inception in 1957.

DESE Names New Deputy Commissioner of Learning Services

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) announces Kelli Jones will serve as the new deputy commissioner of the Division of Learning Services. Jones will assume this position on November 1, 2024, bringing to DESE more than two decades of education experience.

“Kelli brings a blend of vision, analytical skills, communication prowess, and enthusiasm for education,” said Commissioner of Education Karla Eslinger. “I am looking forward to working with such a dynamic leader!”

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is excited to announce that seven educators have advanced as finalists for the 2025 Missouri Teacher of the Year award.

The finalists are

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has announced the 16 Regional Teachers of the Year who have been selected as semi-finalists for the 2025 Missouri Teacher of the Year award. The Teacher of the Year program spotlights the positive impact excellent teachers have on their students.

The list of semi-finalists includes teachers from multiple grade levels, subject areas, and nearly every region of the state:

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is hosting an event with Dolly Parton and her Imagination Library team on Tuesday, August 27, 2024, at 11 a.m. in Kansas City, Missouri. The event will celebrate the success so far of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Missouri and encourage more Missouri families to enroll.

Six Pioneers in Education will be in the spotlight on Monday, July 29, in recognition of their commitment and contributions to public education in Missouri. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) will recognize the 2024 Pioneers during the 63^rd Annual Cooperative Conference for School Administrators. The ceremony will take place during a luncheon with more than 600 school leaders in attendance.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has announced eight Missouri Gold Star Schools for 2024. The program, which aligns with the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, recognizes schools for outstanding academic achievement or for performing at high levels while serving a significant proportion of disadvantaged students.

Missouri’s 2024 Gold Star Schools include: